Ecuador said on Friday it had cleared outstanding disputes with U.S. companies to sustain a series of trade preferences and start talks next month for a free trade agreement with the United States. This could greatly benefit canned and frozen tuna exports of Ecuador to the U.S. market.
“The Ecuadorian government has reached agreements pending on problems and disputes related to eligibility criteria for the Andean trade benefits,†the trade ministry said in a statement late on Friday.
Ecuador needs approval from the U.S. Trade Representative on the agreements in order to sustain a series of trade preferences that were awarded to the Andean nation and three others to reward their fight against the illegal drugs trade.
Ecuador also hopes the accords clear the path to start negotiating a free trade agreement with Washington on May 18 along with its neighbors Colombia and Peru.
The disputes with Duke Energy Corp, BellSouth Corp. and IBM Corp. were over debts totaling more than $10 million. The ministry said a payment plan had been worked out to resolve the problem.